Users often use clients, such as Web browsers, to access Web pages that are stored on servers. When a user clicks on a link to a Web page, for example, the user's client may send a hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP) request to a server on which the Web page is stored. Upon receiving the HTTP request, the server provides the Web page to the client. The Web page may include a variety of components, such as charts, tables, etc. The server may analyze data for generating the various components before the components can be provided to the client. Accordingly, a delay may occur between a time at which the client sends the HTTP request to the server and a time at which the various components are ready to be provided to the client.
In accordance with one conventional technique for providing a Web page to a client, a server does not provide any information regarding the Web page to the client until all components of the Web page are ready to be provided. In accordance with this technique, after the server determines that all of the components are ready, the server provides all of the components to the client at once. Accordingly, a user of the client is not informed of the server's status with respect to provision of the Web page until the Web page eventually is provided to the client, which may negatively affect the user's satisfaction regarding the user's Web experience.
In accordance with another conventional technique for providing a Web page to a client, a server initially provides an indicator to the client that specifies that the Web page will be provided when all of the components of the Web page are ready to be provided. In accordance with this technique, a user of the client is informed of the server's status, which may improve the user's satisfaction regarding the user's Web experience. For instance, a framework of the Web page may be provided to the client along with the indicator to indicate that progress is being made with respect to provision of the Web page.
However, conventional techniques for providing a Web page to a client, including those techniques mentioned above, may result in substantial delays before any of the components of the Web page are provided to the client.